The stellar wind(s) in Beta Lyrae

High signal-to-noise ratio observations of the He I λ5876 feature are presented for the interacting binary β Lyrae. Inspection of these and previously published data on the strong optical He I and Balmer lines during primary eclipse leads to a new interpretation of the phase variable nature of these lines. Arguments are presented to suggest that the majority of the emission in the highly variable violet side, and a similar amount of red emission, is produced in a stellar wind from the primary star. This wind is occulted during primary eclipse to cause the dramatic variations in the optical emission-line profiles. The remainder, and majority, of the red-side emission originates in an expanding shell surrounding the entire system which also produces the P Cygni-like emission lines in the far ultraviolet.